Home From Home

             "Fabulous Night. Top drawer entertainment and lovely vibes."

     There was very much a home-grown feel to last night's events at NFC. Remarkably, every act had a Nuneaton connection of some sort. This was all the more remarkable as some people had to set out well before dawn to get there at all,owing to the total gridlock currently imposed on the town by various lunatics with barriers. With Eastborough Way and Coton Arches already sealed off, someone had evidently told the Authorities that motorists were still slipping into town via  the Long Shoot. Cue YET ANOTHER! set of four way lights to protect  a hole in the pavement the size of an umbrella

           Though we still have some nice photos to share with you it was a shame to see that several of our key photographers were missing. John Wright was still presumably up in the Highlands somewhere pestering Gannets and harassing Oystercatchers. Max Wright is on a permanent holiday as he travels around Europe taking snapshots of pub restaurants. And one can only assume that John B Smith, traumatised by a frankly weird parking incident earlier in the day,was sleeping it all off somewhere under the beady eye of a Custody Sergeant. So my thanks to those who did take snaps including Sue Sanders,Flossy and Mags.

      But a good turnout,a fun evening and a very friendly, homely atmosphere,even though many regulars were missing. Our own John Kearney, for example away sunning himself far away in the South of France. Our own Paul Moore,off rehearsing with another band. So it was yet another line-up to start us up-myself and Flossy from Nunc,John Harris from Dragonhead and Jon Harrington from Blues Monkey. Making a tidy sound though, I have to admit.  We returned in the second half, this time additionally roping in Dave Parr to play along in an extended version of "How Long Blues." 

       Residents aside, our first guest spot featured the very welcome return to NFC of Ian Bourne. Last time we'd seen him was at That Other Place That Closed Suddenly.  He's come through some tough times health-wise since then, so it was good to see him back on the horse,and his strong voice sounded as good as ever.

           Ian was followed by another of Nuneaton's many home-grown troubadours, Dave Parr, who we don't see half often enough. Dave delivered three typically laid back songs with a wry humour,and some very nifty guitar playing. His broken capo managed to last him through the evening.

               Our good friend and loyal supporter of local Folk Clubs Maria Barham played three numbers packed with verve and energy. So much so that actually capturing her on film without blurring was difficult, as she swung about the stage. She was on top form, and started with a version of Californian Dreamin' which was returned beautifully by the audience. Always a very enjoyable experience that.

             Dragonhead returned to NFC with John Harris one of the busiest musicians in the area at the moment. As I explained during my introduction,Nunc have been messing with his head at present,introducing him to whole new areas of Folk and Roots whilst utilising his expertise on bass and steel guitars. So it was good to see that this had not affected him too much. Even though he did start with a number from Jungle Book. A Mavericks favourite got everyone singing again, and it looked as if John had settled again until he confessed( to Anne's visible amusement)," I'm not quite sure that was the version Anne expected to hear."  The Mexican Wave they introduced was remarkable. Beer was spilt and hearing aids flew in all directions.

           I had inadvertently missed Pete McParland off the night's proceedings,partly because he has yet to embrace fully the technological wonders of the Internet and Social media. But Dragonhead called him up to join them on one of their numbers. And here's the evidence...

        There were elements of uncertainty about whether or not Malc & Gill would make it to the stage which added a frisson to proceedings,but they did, to everyone's relief and warm applause.   It was unfortunate that just as they began singing, the free grub (which has become a hallmark of NFC,kindly provided each month by Richard the Guvn'or),appeared on the bar counter. Someone very kind (me!) managed to grab a plateful for them, so that there was a bit left to snack on when they got back to their table. They were in fine voice and Gill looked very glamourous. (Not that she doesn't always of course). They coaxed Jon up to tootle along with them on the Kate Wolfe song that is a regular part of their repertoire. 

               And what can you say about our headline act, Brian Phillips? Star quality in every department. Raconteur, Naturalist,Comedian, ace guitar player,great singer and an all round good egg. Drafted in to replace his mate Kev Dempsey who had had to rearrange his June appearance, Brian was well up for it,treating us to two sets of varying length but unremitting entertainment.

            Amidst the music We learned more about the continuing saga of Whelk Wars and Seagull feuds. Brian read to us from his not so little Red Book,mused on the meaning of armpit hair, made continual and slightly disturbing references to the female tennis stars he was picking up on his iPad and also performed songs occasionally. His dry delivery and skillful handling of banter and friendly heckling was a joy to behold. Through it all, Brian retained the stage personna of a slightly anxious Frankie Boyle. Brilliant. 

The Big Weekend ( Part Two)

       And so, on to Sunday. A beer festival bash in The Market Square in Atherstone. Rapidly becoming a home from home. Quite apart from The Larder and the Folk Club out at Baddesley, this was our fourth visit to the area in and around The Angel Inn. An excellent CAMRA pub fronting The Square . This time we were in/on The Square itself. A Fund-Raising Beer Festival, with food stalls, a marquee for us to play under, and a huge (and very aesthetically pleasing) canopy covering much of the square. The full DrunkMonkey/ Nuncmonkey line-up this time,less john Kearney. 

       This in several ways was a more challenging gig for u than the previous day. We did not have the luxury of a sound engineer or a P.A. already set up for us,as we'd had at The Herbert. We did not have the glue that binds us, the Human Jukebox, John Kearney.  We had agreed to do two 45 minute sets, and so there was a lot more material to work upon beforehand. We'd had only limited rehearsal time together in this format and so we dropped a few numbers and added a few more to the running order of the extended set list. 

       The weather was if anything even hotter than Saturday, and the audience was considerably more um, "relaxed". There was a wonderful choir on before us, I don't know what their name was but they were very good. We even encouraged them to do an encore, which meant we were running late even before we got to set up. Using the pub's P.A. and their own stuff (and a bit of Mr.Kearney's) Paul Moore and John Harris cobbled together a coherent and audible sound system from the mass of cables,boxes speakers and amps in the back of their cars. Sheer magic. (Well done,guys!) Flossy,Jon and I sauntered about looking impressive, but really, that side of the business is not really our forte. 

        We got under way with "How Long Blues" a standard start for us nowadays. With the timings left up to us we were able to do a longer version of this Leroy Carr song than the Herbert one on Saturday,with plenty of instrumental breaks to warm everyone up. Although inside that tent (or outside) warming up in the literal sense was not necessary. 

       "Jesus On The Mainline  followed,and with the Church looming just behind us,I dedicated it to "Atherstone Cathedral." (The event was a Restoration Fund Raiser, but few smiles crossed any lips at that time except ours). 

          It was all very Backwoods Americana as Vigilante Man followed. John Harris rushed off as I introduced it. I thought I'd offended him,but he'd gone to fetch a chair so he could do his star turn on a which has to be lap-played using a plectrum. I'm told it sounded very authentic. There certainly appeared to be a Bigfoot or two nodding along appreciatively as we finished up. "Copperhead Road," we had originally shied away from,as JK leads on those vocals, but with Bass John leading, we romped through that too. 

       You could smell the Whuskey burnin' (or maybe it was just Greggs overcooking the Steak Bakes)  as Paul Moore took the lead and we joined him on the choruses of a very enjoyable "Sitting On Top of The World."  Flossy and I gave the others a rest with "After The Goldrush"  acapella before it was time for yer actual folk tune. Not Trad Arr. though. JH moans endlessly about Richard & Linda Thompson, but we ticked off "When I Get To The Border " no sweat. (We did  "Down Where The Drunkards Roll" second half with barely a shudder from him).We then concluded the first half with the Muddy Waters epic  " Standin' Round Cryin'."

            After a hospitality break,involving some networking, some  minor adjustments,a bit of furniture moving and a beer top-up,we opened the second half with " If I Had Possession." We nodded a tribute to The Stones being at The Ricoh with "All Over Now," before reverting to Country with "All Gotta Die Some day." "Perfect" was just that, followed by a stirring version of "When Love Comes To Town,"  Flossy curled her best blues voice round "Guilty" and was a bit nonplussed as a fan rushed up afterwards. to tell her that she was just like Stevie Nicks. He's barred from most of the Town pubs so we'll take that with a pinch of Fire Water
          It was time to start wrapping things up with  "Bring It On Home," "Angel from Montgomery" and "Knocking On Heaven's Door," completing  the day's business for us. By this time it felt as if we might be. Everyone was tiring and the heat was reaching Montgomery like proportions.  We'll be back at The Angel next month,Sunday 15th, for Stonefest. 
          We packed up and retired to give the Oakham Citra some more attention. It looks lie we got one or more additional gigs out of it all. Tamworth Beer Festival, September? Oh I think so. 
        
   

The Big Weekend (Part One)

       Well it was for us,anyway. The Bigger weekend (last week),Coventry had welcomed Paloma Faith, Stereophonics,Snow Patrol, UB 40,The Selector,Liam Gallagher and many more to The War Memorial Park. This weekend there were to be artistes of even greater stature and quality (ahem!) on view for free in the city centre.  

      The Stones were also on at The Ricoh Saturday night, backed by The Specials but more importantly, we had back to back gigs on Saturday and Sunday. That's  a pretty big fish for us. Appearing currently under the banner of DrunkMonkey, a 6-7 piece collaboration involving personnel from three bands: Dragonhead, Nunc and Blues Monkey. When will we come out of the closet and formalise this arrangement as a proper band in its own right? Good question. 

      Having accepted these respective invitations way back,we found (to our initial horror) that Nunc's key instrumentalist and engine room,John Kearney,would actually absent for both dates. Planning on sunning himself in Languedoc instead. Nonetheless he (and the rest of the co-operative) insisted that the show(s) must go on so we got to work rearranging  and rehearsing the Nunc repertoire, adding in some new material as well. All aimed at retaining that pioneering mix of mash-ups and segues of popular and traditional music that has become a bit of a Nunc trademark. Along with daft shirts and other quirky items of attire.  

     On Saturday afternoon, outside the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum, right in the heart of Coventry we provided part of the entertainment for the MotoFest event. In Coventry.  My home town. The Motor City. This was  part of a CovFolk initiative, aimed at bringing Folk and Roots music closer to the public's attention. A two day event featuring Dave Fry,Kevin Dempsey,Daisybell (great name!),Dr.Bennett,Kristy Gallagher,and many more.

                  The city centre was awash with beautiful cars (old and new) and the crowds were simply massive. The Herbert Stage was set up facing Jordan Well-opposite a bar which used to be the Godiva pub. A place where many decades ago I had fronted Black Parrot Seaside (then a rock line-up) downstairs in the old "Dive Bar." Musically in fact, a very nostalgic area for me, having also gigged in Drapers,The Golden Cross,The Lanch,(now Coventry University),The Colin Campbell,The Craven Arms and many other central music venues within walking distance.

      Pete Willow, Rob Halligan et al had put a lot of hard work into the MotoFest music event. They even arranged for magnificent weather on both days. The Herbert area was a delightful spot, elevated above the road and with a lovely cafeteria come coffee bar facing one side. The proximity of Drapers and its mini Beer Festival did not pass without notice,either. 

       The crowds and traffic jams caused a few problems. A few who had planned to catch our set had to give up and turn back-unable to park anywhere near! We assembled in Drapers (rude not to) and then moved back across to the performance area in time to catch Maria Barham's act. Once under way ourselves,time passed quickly,we were well received and we even got an encore. This was "Knocking On Heaven's Door" which we'd never done previously without JK taking lead vocals. So I led on them instead,and the audience seemed to approve.  

      Dr Bennett followed us-Sarah Bennett and Dan Gascoigne. Their guitar work was as impressive as ever,and their arrangements remain thoughtful and challenging. And they played my favourite, their version of Anjii. Daisybell followed them, as polished and rehearsed as ever,although they did get the giggles over one song that appeared to be a variation on what they had rehearsed. Lovely harmonies and arrangements and harmonies, as always, from The 'Belles.

It was good to catch up with some old friends during the afternoon-Neil Parker,Lawrence Lam and Steve Smelt for example.

         Once we had grabbed a bite to eat and a beer, we returned to see the Outdoor Ceilidh Band well under way and getting up a fine head of steam with some Country Dancing outside The Herbert. Still the muscle cars drifted past,mostly revving up in the Key of G fortunately. A few of us drifted on to The Twisted Barrel then, for I had a bus to catch from Sky Blue Way. And that, my friends is true rock and roll. Not a Tour Bus, but a humble De Courcey.